Divorce As We Know It
by Cassandra Flavius
Summary: Darien is unhappy with his marriage, and as a result he cheats on his wife, and files for divorce. At the same time he chases after the beautiful Serena. But there is something amiss with her...
1. Chapter 1

Hi, every one, I'm back with a new fanfiction, after a long hiatus! Lately I'm been busy passing my IB exams, and getting used to university... law is not the esiest of things to study, but it's dreadfully fun! Anyway, I'll get on with the story, here's my disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon or any of the characters mentioned! Don't sue me, I'm heavily in debt. Arigato!

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**Divorce, As We Know It**

**Chapter 1**

He woke up in a pool of golden curls, and felt the sheets caress his skin. Turning around, he saw her skin peeping thought the mass of gold. He admired the little ball sleeping beside him, and noticed that she had kept her shoes on. She was beautiful, he thought as he firmly caressed the length of her waist down to her lower thighs. He kissed her shoulder and settled himself against his pillows again, smiling.

Darien was rather satisfied lying on that bed, feeling her warmth. He'd known her for some time, but before the previous night he could never have dreamed that she could be so passionate. He was driven to the edge of insanity. Darien had been deprived of any sexual intercourse for almost eight months, as his wife was almost never at home. And if she ever was, he gladly preferred to work himself out of seeing her. So it was a night that his body very much relished.

Closing his eyes, he thought back on one little detail. It occurred to him that it had been four years since he'd engaged in this activity without protection. He was aware of all the dangers of his conduct, but any thought of disease had flown out of his head. And the idea of impregnating the woman, Serena, rather amused him. In fact, he kind of wished it would happen, but apparently she was on birth controls.

Lastly, he thought about Trista, realizing that he didn't feel a hint of remorse. It was high time he communicated his decision to his estranged wife. He sat up, and reached for the phone on the nightstand beside him. He dialled lazily, and patiently waited for her to answer the phone.

"I'm in the middle of a meeting, so this had better be an emergency, otherwise I'll never forgive you," she greeted him rather harshly.

Darien chuckled, and taking his time, said: "Trista, I wanted to inform you that I've committed adultery. You can start the divorce process now, and you can have everything."


	2. Chapter 2

A week passed and he had not heard from either Trista, or Serena. That worried him a little, but he was able to shrug it off. During the week he had rented a small apartment downtown and removed himself and his belongings from the house he and his wife bought six years before. His circle of friends, i.e. business partners had all been updated on the changes in his life. And currently, he was carefreely having lunch with his brother Andrew. Soon, they were joined by Greg and Diamond, all partners in business.

Diamond gave him a strong pat on the back. "How are you holding up, Darien-boy?" he said sarcastically.

"So, you really want a divorce?" Greg asked sitting down, scanning the menu. "Isn't it a bit sudden? You were such a happy couple!"

"Happy my ass! The past year has been hell," Darien half replied. "I'm tired of it all; especially of her. Our marriage didn't turn out the way I'd envisioned it…"

"Yeah, but not everything goes as you envision it, Darien," Greg noted. "Marriage isn't a case which you can win or lose if it doesn't go your way. You have to work at it…"

"I'm sure we'll be able to turn it into a case very soon!" Diamond smiled heartily, shamelessly showing his bloodthirsty, lawyerly fangs. He received a glare from the other three men.

Finally sitting down, Diamond rambled on, ignoring the icy expressions. "Really, there is a good reason as to why I never go for the mysterious type like Trista. And you can't say I didn't warn you about her, buddy. They are so damned misleading. They trick you into believing that they're more that they are; that they're the right woman, when in reality they're just as plain and boring as the rest of them. One really ought to accuse them of fraud! At least with the non-mysterious, simple chicks a man knows what he's bargaining for when he get involved. So I'm totally on your side this one… always believed women like her needed a jail sentence."

"This coming from the most notorious playboy to walk on the face of this earth," Andrew inserted in a light tone.

"My dear friend, at least I'm notorious! Any woman not in for the ride can opt out due to my reputation. Trista-women are exciting like me, but deathly private about their agenda."

"You paint Trista as a monster, but she wasn't the adulterer," Greg reminded them.

"Well, her fault for leading him to believe that she was a wonderful goddess, then after trapping him, disappointing him like that. I daresay Darien held out well; eight months deprived of his needs, I tell you!"

Darien leaned back and smiled, hiding his embarrassment, as he received curious glances from his brother and Greg.

"And she completely broke him. A man with any sense of self would not go down without a fight, and here he is giving up all his belongings!"

"Serves me right for not having written a pre-nup," Darien explained. "It will teach me not to commit the same mistake again."

As he said this he casually looked up to lazily observe the sidewalk traffic by restaurant. His eyes quickly landed on a flowing sheet of gold that hurriedly passed by them. Quickly with no warning whatsoever, he jumped from his seat and followed her. She had not yet noticed him when she entered a department store close by their restaurant, and minutes later Darien caught a hold of her arm in a female clothes' boutique. She reflexively turned around, surprised to see him.

"You!" was her exclamation.

"Me!" he copied. "I've been trying to reach you for a week now, but I only get your answer machine. Is there anything wrong?"

Serena relaxed and letting her astonished look fade. Then, rather smugly, she cocked her head slightly to the left and smiled. She crossed her arms, and raised an eyebrow.

"As a matter of fact, there is," she said at last while Darien ogled at her helplessly. Having said this, she decided it was time to move on to the next dress, and as she turned she added, "You."

Darien was shocked, but his reflexes were quick and he caught her wrist just in time. "What do you mean me?" he pressed.

"Release me," she ordered calmly. "I would like it if you stopped trying to get in contact with me, please," she then said bluntly.

Darien was confused; "But how? We spent such a wonderful night!"

"Exactly, only one night! The only night, or do you usually tend to stalk your one night stands?"

"One night stand!" Darien exclaimed in disbelief. "We've known each other for around six weeks! I thought we were heading towards a relationship with all that courting…"

"Relationship?" she exclaimed indignantly, almost disgusted. Then she added before she made a hasty exit off the store, "I don't even like you!"

Darien watched her golden curls sway with her movement. He blinked and blinked again. This was one of those times when he really thought women were hopeless to understand. It didn't make sense; if she didn't even like him why would she spend weeks flirting, leading him on, and finally sleeping with him. He felt a pat on his shoulder, and turned to face Amara, his friend, business partner, divorce lawyer.

"Ouch!" she said grinning. "Did you just get dumped? Poor you!"

Darien glanced at her and shrugged aiming for a "such is life" pose.

"You know, she looked familiar," Amara said thoughtfully, "Was she, perhaps, one of you clients?"

"No, I remember all my clients," Darien answered.

"Or family, maybe?" Amara tried again.

"You know it's just me, Andrew and his family…"

"How odd, then! Anyway, tell me, have you heard anything from Trista yet?" she began while they made their way back to the restaurant.

"No."

"I think you should expect the worst, buddy! Either she thinks you're just that damned unimportant, or she doesn't want a divorce. You're going to need a lawyer in this one, and you're lucky since I have time to spare on your sorry ass."

"That's very kind of you," he answered sarcastically, "But I told you I'm fine. I'm a lawyer myself remember?"

"You're going to need me, so, I had better ignore what you just said," she laughed, "Besides; you don't have the special knowledge that comes from years of experience in the field."


	3. Chapter 3

Divorce As We Know It Chapter 3

"This had better be important, Darien," were the words he was met with some three weeks after he had last talked to her. The divorce papers had been drafted, printed and sent. There were, in fact, two different legal papers: one speaking for an absolute divorce and the other for a no-fault divorce. Trista could pick and choose; he'd signed both of them. But there was a problem –

"I know our divorce is not important to you, and that you will brush it off by excusing yourself since more important matters are waiting, but I would like you to be aware that this issue is important to me! That you don't give a flying shit about what is important to me, but this call is being recorded and, well, you had better cooperate."

"Darien, I care very much about things that are important to you," was the reply.

"Yeah, you have been so eager to contact me about the divorce papers these past two weeks," he added sarcastically. Then he went on rather annoyed; "Why haven't you signed them yet?"

"Honey, I don't want a divorce," she stated.

"Come again?" he asked in a flat voice. "And why is that?"

"I should be asking you why you want a divorce, Dear, but sure I will answer your question: because I think our marriage is wonderful. I do not want to be separated from you…" was the very collected answer.

"What you mean is that our marriage is very convenient for you, and that you don't want to compromise your carrier," he commented rather annoyed.

"Why are you trying to antagonise me, Darien?" Trista questioned soberly. "I understand that you are going through some sort of phase akin to a midlife crisis, and I'm ready to forgive you and give you some time on your own to think and figure yourself out –"

Darien sighed. He rolled his eyes, lent back on his chair and loosened his tie.

"Cut the crap, Trista, I know you!" he said as he raked a hand through his hair. "I know being married is good for your carrier ambitions and image. Hard working, married, independent female – that is what you are going for. But I don't love you anymore, and I want out!"

"But I love you… You can't make decisions based only on yourself. We are two in a marriage and we have to compromise. Every couple has problems sometimes and I'm willing to go to a marriage counsellor with you when I get back."

"Trista, I don't remember which side of the bed you sleep on, I don't remember the colour of your eyes, or your hair. I'm beginning to forget what you look like. What's more, I don't feel bad about it, and I can't wait until the day that I can walk past you on my way to work and see you as just one of a thousand people in the crowd; that is how dead you are to me.

"So why, for what its worth, would you want to stay married to me? – Wait, don't tell me! I know it: because it looks good and reliable, it shows off your success. Well, I'm not having that! I will fight for my freedom."

"What a wonderful little speech, Dear," was the response. "You break my heart, but I know you can't mean a word of it."

"Trista, sign the papers, will you," Darien rounded off rather tired and frustrated. "I'm telling you, the more of my time you waste, the less generous I will become. I would hate to have to go to court over this."

Darien hung up.


	4. Chapter 4

**Divorce As We Know It - Chapter 4**

"Well, you get what you give."

These were Greg's words of wisdom on Darien's complaint that it had almost been a month since he last saw Serena. Amara has been telling him that it's pretty clear that he was dumped that day at the department store, but as she had put it, he, in a rather pathetic fashion, refused to accept that fact.

"So much for the 'real connection'," Diamond chirped. "I think you've forgotten how to play the game, Darien…"

"What? Next thing you're saying is that I should join you on your hunts?" he questioned sarcastically, and watched Diamond raise his eyebrows in agreement. Darien looked at his colleague hard, exhibiting an 'I'm-not-like-you' aura.

"But it's so strange," Andrew remarked after a long pause, allowing everyone to dig into their lunches. "You told us about how sweet she was, I'd never think she would be the kind to dump you like that…"

"Maybe she found out that he is married," Greg spat out, emphasizing the key word. "A sweet female knows better than to wreck a marriage!"

Darien was over the phase of resenting Greg's bitter and hardly supportive remarks. He was that kind of a guy, so damned honest and not to mention loyal. It did not help Darien's case that Amy, his wife, was a rather successful architect who was career driven. Greg was supportive of Amy's endeavors, just like a feminist husband should be. No matter how Darien put it, he could not make his friend understand the actions he was taking. Sure, Greg had to give up many things in order to ease the burdens on his wife, but they still had a connection which made up for all the sacrifice. Darien could see the complicity and warmth in their eyes when they were together. Unlike him, they had something to hold on to… and they were together, which is more than he could say about his marriage: Trista was away most of the year. His was not just the classic case of a man who after a few years realizes that marriage is unexciting, boring and routine-like. Nevertheless, Darien quickly got used to the chauvinist pig tag that Greg was bent on labeling him with.

"Or maybe he's just a bad judge of character," Amara contributed amused, still chewing on her stake. She was rather unsympathetic to men's' love problems in general. "A girl like her can do whatever she wants with a man; he was not kidding about her raving beauty. What does she do again?"

"She's an administrator."

"You know that is not her real profession, she's too pretty for that," she said light heartedly. Darien chose to ignore whatever Amara was trying to insinuate.

Darien was not one to get discouraged just because his friends were critical of his choices. In fact, one of the key character traits that made him a star attorney was that he simply did not get discouraged at all. He had a mind of his own and a line to pursue. So Serena's harsh rejection could not stop him from calling her again a few days later. He meant to have her: he could not get her out of his mind. Her unaffected manners and relaxed aura that she exhibited was to Darien like drinking lemonade on a hot summer day.

He'd left her all his numbers but she never answered his calls. Disappointment started to make a nest inside him. One could not be lucky forever; eventually luck tends to run out… could this be the first case he'd lost?

He had yet to make any headway on the Trista front either. Sure, a few days before she had actually taken one whole hour of her life to call him about the divorce. Her point was to talk him out of bringing the divorce to court by casually blurting out well practiced but not convincing 'I-love-yous'. Trista would not make a great actress, nor a loving wife and mother for that matter. The commanding voice that had once been sexy, exciting and reasonable was now only hollow and cold to his ears. Recently each time they talked on the phone, the fact that they were choosing widely different paths of life became alarmingly clear… especially now that he'd met someone like Serena, which her soft, melodic voice.

She was crazy beautiful, yet she still managed to maintain that girl-next-door kind of humbleness about her. And she was so articulate and eloquent in her speech that her slight southern drawl was hardly noticeable. She was so charming! Or was he blinded by the excitement of falling in love?

Could it be that he had an inaccurate vision of her character? The thought frightened him. His skill in interpreting a persons' personality was a product of years of legal practice. Now, if he was losing his touch, then how was he going to win cases? The importance of quickly being able to identify a witness' weakness when cross-examining them on the stand was not to be underestimated. If Amara was right about her comment, then this further supported the fact that he should retire. He had won the big cases and got the big money, so it was high time he started a new phase in his life…

But could a person really be that wonderful? Should he trust himself with Serena? Why the hell was she not calling back? Should he visit her at home? No, that would be stalking—

The office phone rang. Three times. For a while Darien just looked at it surprised. He finally picked it up.

"Hi, this is Darien Shields."

"Uh, hi. It's me…" he recognized the shaky female voice.

"Serena!" he exclaimed brightly.

"Don't sound so happy! And it is really annoying how you keep on calling me! Don't you know when to give up? It's creepy!" she replied very annoyed.

Darien was stunned. He blinked a couple of times, trying to make out the head and foot of this puzzle. He heard her breathe ceremoniously.

"I have something to tell you," she said. And then she continued in a faltering voice, "It's not good."

"What it is?" Darien probed in a very soft voice. His brain sort of figured that he should brace himself, but the feeling was unreal and blasé since he really could not fathom the bad news.

"Oh, it's very bad!" she sobbed and then she started crying.

"Serena… Don't cry! What happened? Are you hurt? Calm down… Tell me what happened and we'll try to work it out. Please?" He comforted her.

It was a long time until the crying stopped, and longer still until she finally spoke, hesitantly. "I'm pregnant…" Another 'bout of sobs followed.

Darien's heart took a leap. It took him a little while to process the information. "Is it mine?" he managed at last. Mentally he kicked himself, of course it was his! Why else would she be calling and telling him that?

"Yes," she replied in a heartbreakingly unhappy sob. Darien could picture her wretched crying face just by hearing that answer.

His emotions were the exact opposite. His whole being brightened, he knew he'd done something right! This was a sign, he thought grinning widely, a miracle even! if one looked at the facts: woman on birth control pills still gets pregnant! He let the boy in him be proud of his fighter sperm! What fine sperm it was! And it will create a fine baby!

"Are you at home?" he asked suddenly with slight urgency.

"Yes…" she sobbed.

"Give me twenty minutes; I'll be right there, okay!" He said already standing up, grabbing his car keys, and looking for his blackberry… he had her address there.

"No…" He was not listening. "I don't—" he hung up.

Darien almost ran out of his office, abandoning the important shipping case that he'd been working on. He left a hurried message to his assistant to cancel all his appointments today, and to tell the others that he didn't know when he'd be back.


	5. Chapter 5

**Divorce As We Know It- Chapter 5**

He stopped at a red light, it suddenly dawned upon him just how desperate he had been about making it work with Serena. He thought about his friends and how they perceived him. They knew; he smiled embarrassed at himself. He was probably a fool, but now nothing could really take Serena away from him. They were going to have a child… and he would convince her that this was reason enough for them to be together. Green light. He switched to second gear and drove off.

There he was, outside her door, knocking. She wouldn't answer him, but he knew she was in there. It had taken him no more than twenty minutes to get to her home, and he'd told her to wait. He was quite annoyed, but he wasn't about to give up. He brought out is cell phone and called her house; he could hear the muffled ringing of her phone. And he let it ring, and continued knocking, if she wasn't going to open up freely then he'd torture her into doing it, if he had to. The answering machine beeped.

"Serena, I know you're in there! Open the door! I won't go away until you do!" he informed her rather loudly. Then he hung up and dialed her up again. He was not going to give up until she gave up, so the noise continued for a little while.

Serena must have gotten tired of hearing the phone ring and the door bang constantly. She picked up and shouted: "Go away! You're disturbing the neighbors!"

Darien did not skip a beat: "I wouldn't be disturbing if you would have been so kind as to open the damned door!"

"No! I never said you could come here. Leave, you don't have the right to be here," she said coldly.

"Serena! We have important things to talk about. Be a bit reasonable… Open the door, will you!" Darien tried to sound calm.

"No! If you don't go away, I'll call the cops," she threatened.

He felt a surge of anger through his system, and he sneered acridly. He then added tartly, "Please, do call them. And since we're now threatening each other, let me tell you that I'm a lawyer. I don't know if you know, but I'm very good at what I do. And I'm sure the officers will see it the way I do: I'm just a man who is trying to take care of his child."

She was silent, but her breathing told him that she had lost her leverage. He did not know that she was white with fear, and that her knees had given way and that the dull thud he vaguely heard was Serena supporting herself against the wall so as not to fall. She was scared witless, and looked it when she finally opened the door.

He wasted no time in letting himself in, a little part of him told him not to give her any chances to change her mind. He glanced at her, she was a sad mess. Not at all like the calm confident woman he knew her as. She looked younger! radiated a different kind of personality, and wore different clothes. She was not recognizable but for the warm, homey emotion she provoked within him that always made him respond to her. He closed the door.

His heart tugged at the sight of her. She looked so frail… had he made her feel this way? He brought her into his embrace and kissed her. Passionately. Channeling all his feelings of joy of fatherhood, compensating for all the times that he'd been denied access to her lips. Only now did he truly realize how much he'd missed her.

She was not responding to him, he noticed after a short while. He released her lips, and she immediately tried to wiggle out of his embrace. But he was not about to let her go.

"Don't!" he commanded with all his masculinity. Serena froze at his command. He sighed, and softened, caressing her face. "Don't worry… Don't you worry about a thing! It's okay, I'm here for you…"

"Don't talk like you're my lover! I don't want you here," she spat, demonstrating an angry face about as scary as a mop dog's. If her word had not carried the designated impact, he probably would have kissed her adorable little frown.

But, he was silent a short while, letting her words sink in. "Why?" he asked quietly.

"I hate you," she explained, her voice thick with emotion.

"Huh?"

She started crying and hitting him on the chest, trying to break free of his embrace.

"I hate you!" She repeated wrathfully several times as she cried.

"What have I done?" he asked concerned, but still in the blue.

"You ruined my life!" she managed in a cold voice.

He let her go, rattled. She quickly walked away from him. He couldn't really argue with that. She wasn't planning this, so he understood that an accidental pregnancy was not the ideal scenario. Nevertheless, he felt that she was over dramatizing it a little… But what did he know? He wasn't a woman. This pregnancy would probably be a nightmare scenario for him too, had he not been that way inclined. So, she probably had every right to feel that her life was ruined. He eyed her softly; he was going to tell her that he was ready to support her in every way, shape or form. But Serena was quicker—

"You didn't need to come here at all. I called you just to ask if you would contribute to half of the abortion costs—" she paused for a second, watched his expression darken, and then added quickly with considerably less authority, "since it takes two to tango."

Abortion? What? Was she out of her mind? He was so angry at her. Did she not see things properly?

"I'm not paying for an abortion. You're keeping the baby," he stated with an iron voice.

"What?" it was her turn to be rattled.

"You heard me. No abortion!" he said, raising his voice a little. He wanted to slap the underserved cuteness away from her face, for having such a ludicrous idea.

"Do you know how much I've wanted a child? There is no way I'm letting you kill it. Besides, you have nothing to worry about: I will assume full responsibility. I don't understand why you are even mentioning an abortion in the first place!"

Serena gave him a cutting glare. "What do you think I am?" she asked, disdain dripping from her voice, "A baby factory? You get to insert your spawn inside and then just leave it to brew for nine months? Do you want a two year guarantee with that too, just in case it's faulty?

He was annoyed. Never had he been so angry at a woman before. Seriously! You'd think pregnancy was contagious. She was driving him completely hormonal!

"Would you calm the hell down! At least invite me in, we can sit down and you can calmly tell me what your goddamned problem is!"

"My problem is that just because you want a fucking baby I have to go unemployed for about a year! Where do you think I'll get the money to survive? Let me tell you, in case you didn't already know, most people aren't rich! They have to work to earn a living!" she shouted, while he let himself in and sat on her couch.

He was perplexed. "They are firing you because you're pregnant? You know they can't do that, I could very well represent you on that… if nothing else it would get them to reconsider—"

Serena interrupted him with a loud, teenage-like sigh. "I'm an actress! Pregnant people don't audition! How the hell are they going to get any roles?"

He stared blankly up at her. So Amara was right, was all he could think about. It took him a while to even think of anything to say. If she was able to fool him so well then she was a damned good actress… what was she doing being poor? What else was Amara right about? He tried to remember what else she'd said. He watched her sit down on the sofa across his couch.

"Look, I was researching for a play…" she explained.

"What else have you lied to me about?" he questioned her distantly. He noticed how young she looked. "Mind telling me your real age? It would be good to know if I've just broken any laws."

"Don't make a cake of yourself! I'm 26, like I told you. Are you going to ask me my real name now?" she spat. "Besides, I'm not the only liar in this room. What makes you think I would want a child with a married man? I don't want anything to do with you! It was all a big mistake. Have you even thought of how this kid's life would be if it were born? Do you plan of hanging out with it a couple of hours a day, and then to home to you pretty little wife and pretend like it doesn't exist while I have to wake up in the night and feed it?"

Oh, so that is why she disappeared, he thought. He chose to ignore the fact that he had just been a guinea pig for one of her roles. "I'm getting divorced," he stated.

"Oh, that is so much better!" she commented sarcastically, standing up again, pacing the room. "Don't you see that this child can't happen? We're just two strangers, for god's sake!"

"We're not! There is nothing stopping us from getting to know each other better. And why would you, as a woman, want to abort a baby when you don't have to? Do you think that later in your life you'll feel good about this decision?" he said carefully after a moment of reflection.

Then he sat quiet, thinking, while Serena paced the room. He had hit the right keys, he could tell she was apprehensive about the abortion. Her decided expression now became more pensive. He let himself finally be aware of his surroundings; he couldn't say she was very neat or organized. Things lay here and there around the living room, mostly papers which were probably scripts, and glasses of wine, books. On the far end of the room he got a glimpse of the dirty dishes in her kitchenette, and to his right by a window facing the sun outside, her desk showcased a laptop surrounded by a pile of papers. Even so, he felt like it was a place with life, a place of refuge, a place one felt like coming home to. Perhaps it was because the furniture and decorations around him were so obviously feminine that he was left feeling that just being in the room was almost like being cuddled by a loving lover… And suddenly he and an idea!

"I have a proposition," he said at last, causing her to stop and look at him with doubt. "Keep the baby: you don't need to think about getting another job because I'll sponsor your living costs for as long the baby needs your care. You won't have to worry about a thing during your pregnancy."

"You are paying me to be some kind baby incubator?" she questioned him defiantly.

He smiled, and added sheepishly: "I will only agree to do it under one condition: that you let me live here with you during the pregnancy."

"I knew there was a catch!" she frowned. She was so cute! he thought as she continued muttering in a low voice to herself, while pacing toward the window. "Although it's not a bad deal… I'll have more time to write, and no worries about the bills…"

She had reached the window and leaned against the window pane, and he watched her as the light hit her from behind. It made the stray hairs on the top of her head extra golden, so that now it almost looked like a halo… and she could have been taken for an otherworldly creature, what with the strange hairstyle she had today.

"It will be annoying to have him here, but then again he'll probably be at work all day, so he won't bother me that much."

Her pink blouse with puffy arms looked brighter, but also translucent, and now he could see vestiges of a black brassiere.

"But where will he stay? I only have one room—"

The baggy fit jeans looked more faded, and they hung a little low so he caught a rim of the soft skin just below her belly button as she leaned back a little and supported herself with her arms. He had touched her there before, and right now his finger tips tingled to touch her there again.

"Eeek! This sounds disgustingly bad…"

What was she on about? That sounded pleasurably bad to him! the kind of badness that could only do good. She turned to face him, and the light hit her eyes turning them to a vibrant shade of blue.

"I will agree to your proposition only if you agree to my conditions," she said.

"And what are they?"

"You have to sleep on the couch. And don't even dare to try doing anything indecent!" she stated sharply.

He blinked a few times, was that all? He was expecting something more cumbersome… not that sleeping on the couch was comfortable. And he couldn't say he liked the platonic road their relationship was heading… he had to admit that it would be hard to resist the temptation to touch her indecently, but it was manageable.

"Great!" he concluded the deal, sitting up straight and taking a deep, satisfied breath. "I'll get my things and move in today, then!"

"Humph," Serena acknowledged unexcitedly. She reached for the half filled wine glass that stood at the other end of the window pane, and quickly drained its contents.

"I hope you enjoyed that glass of wine, as it will be the last alcoholic beverage you consume for the duration of your pregnancy!" he stated in a displeased tone, looking at her hard.

"Yes, boss," she replied apathetically.

"I have to go back to work now, are you going to see me out?"

"Since you're now living here, I stand no ceremony towards you. You can see yourself out," she scoffed.

He stood up and walked towards her. He grabbed her face with a hand, and looked down at her. "You make me so mad!" he whispered harshly, "But you're too damned beautiful." He gave her a bitter kiss.

As he headed out, he called casually, "I'll be back in the evening to torment you some more, you grouchy little girl!"


	6. Chapter 6

Hello Everyone!

I will not bullishit you by hurling out the "Good things come to those who wait" line. Randomly taking a 7 month hiatus is unforgivable! I aplogize, and shall endeavour to do better. But I have beeing doing a really tough job that took over my life for the past 6 months and then I needed a well deserved 1 month vacation. I have appreciated your reviews, they are actually what drives me to be inspired to write more! But without further ado, I present you Chapter 6 (tell me what you think!):

**Divorce As We Know It- Chapter 6**

After work Darien drove to his apartment to pick up some of his things. On the way to Serena's place he had a small flashback of her kitchenette. By the look of it she didn't seem like the type who cooked. Thus, he made the correct deduction that there would be no dinner awaiting him when he got there. So he made a detour to his favorite restaurant to buy some take out.

Serena had been on his mind the whole day. He couldn't understand himself, her personality was completely different now and yet he didn't feel betrayed or even turned off by her deception. Quite the contrary, he found her antics that morning adorable, and he felt the urge to get to know her better. A strange idea kept popping up in his head the whole day: he got the feeling that getting involved with her would make his life more interesting…

He was now outside her door again, waiting for her to open it. She seemed to be taking her time, and he was about to right the bell again when he saw the door open half-heartedly. He let himself in across the threshold. He spotted her sauntering off in a dower mood, and felt his heart tug. He dropped his duffel bag and set down the bag of goodies that he brought with him. He grabbed her wrist before she could escape from his reach, and drew her to his chest. He hugged her close, feeling her pleasantly smelling hair brush against his face. He automatically bent down and kissed the nape of her neck.

She moaned involuntarily. She tried to push herself out of his embrace, and looked up. She was blushing.

"What the hell are you doing?" she spat out annoyed, "This is not what we agreed!"

"I didn't do anything indecent! And I've been working hard all day so it's nice to be greeted warmly when I arrive," he slackened his hold of her. "If you don't like it then give me a key, so I may let myself in."

She let herself out of his embrace and started heading toward her room.

"I'll get the spare key," she said without humor.

Darien picked up the paper bag with the food and made his way to the kitchenette. He started with the mountain of dishes that were left on the sink. While he washed them he could hear Serena on the other side of the wall violently push and pull drawers. She probably couldn't remember where she placed the keys. He figured that she was one of those people who put things in "safe places", which they later can't remember. He smiled at himself, and shouted amused:

"You know, it will be in the last place you look!"

"Shut up!" was her muffled reply.

He observed the dishes he'd just washed: glasses, breakfast bowls, small plates— not to mention the wine glasses which lay a bit everywhere. He got a tour of the whole apartment while he was picking them up… It didn't seem as if she dined at home, or at least she had not dined at home since she started pilling the dirty dishes he'd just washed (he estimated it was four days ago).

He had just put a bowl of the pasta dish he bought earlier in the microwave, when Serena emerged out of her room. She looked at him triumphantly, holding out the spare keys in one hand and a cigarette in the other.

Anger quickly washed over him. Why was she like this? How could she?

"I know that you hate me for accidentally getting you pregnant," he started coldly, walking over to her. "But I'm doing what I can to mitigate your inconvenience. I didn't think you'd be as heartless as to seek revenge by harming the baby!"

He stood right in front of her, towering over her, looking down with anger and disdain in his eyes. He grabbed her left hand, and snatched the cigarette out of her finger, crushing it against her sofa, burning it slightly. He turned to throw away the offending cigarette, while Serena remained where she was, paralyzed with fear.

"This is the last cigarette you smoke! I don't want you to harm my baby's health."

"I'm sorry," she stammered, sounding small, "I didn't know… I mean I— Sorry… the—"

The microwave peeped. He looked at her, and upon seeing her apologetic expression, he softened and sighed.

"Dinner is ready," he said, mollified.

"Really, I didn't know," Serena said coming about. "All I know about pregnancy is that it takes 9 months and that my stomach will get incredibly big! I would never want to harm an innocent baby— I won't smoke again…"

"Good," he nodded, setting the pasta bowl on the kitchen table, which he had laid earlier. A small smile involuntarily crept to his lips. "Come, let's eat."

"It smells really good," she said in a quiet voice.

"Doesn't it? It's from my favorite restaurant, _Il Gato_, do you know it?"

"Nope," she answered, and continued to after a short pause, "You haven't taken me there… do you not bring your dates to your favorite restaurants?"

Darien chuckled. "It's been years since I've gone on personal dates, and my ex-wife doesn't like it. So I figured, I'd wait a while before it got bashed by another female."

"Oh."

"You know, I felt bad about depriving you of your wine," he started, showing her the wine bottle that was on the table. "It's non-alcoholic… so it's probably a cold comfort for my little alcoholic here."

"Hey, I'm not an alcoholic!" she frowned.

"However, the wine glasses I washed earlier tell another story," he teased, and watched her frown at him cutely. "Funny how you didn't object to being called mine…" he added.

Serena huffed and started to eat. Darien followed her example, after having opened the white wine bottle and poured her and himself a glass. Serena reached for the glass, after inspecting it skeptically.

"It's not bad at all," she admitted when she set it down.

"Good," Darien concluded with an amused glint in his eyes, looking up, "I don't have to worry about you sneak-drinking alcoholic beverages, then?"

She looked as if about to retort, but seemed to change her mind. They dined quietly, and after that Darien succeeded in persuading the reluctant Serena to do the dishes. He then proceeded with watching the news. As he sat on the couch, he thought that this lifestyle wasn't half bad. And Serena seemed to be thawing, their dinner although quiet was amicable, and their differences of opinion seemed to him to be friendly banter. So, when she was done washing up, he questioned her about where to put his belongings, and she looked at him confused.

"I'm staying here for a while, remember?" he pointed out.

"Yes, I know that…" she said going into her room, probably looking for a space for his things. After a while she yelled from her room, "I've found a space!"

He brought his duffel bag over, she had pushed some of her clothes aside to make space for his.

"Do you want a drawer too?"

"Yep!"

She sighed comically and reached for a drawer with T-shirts, took them out and stuffed them in the drawer right above it. She left the room and left him to unpack, only to come back with masking tape and a marker. When he'd put all his things into the drawer, she labeled it with his name.

"Now you won't get it wrong!"

"What? Do you have things in the other drawers that you don't want me to see?" he questioned suggestively, raising an eyebrow.

She looked at him hard, crossing her arms on her chest. "Obviously. I wouldn't want you going through my clothes."

"Tomorrow I'm going to book a check up for you," Darien stated.

"Ok…"

"You can go anytime, right?"

"Basically."

"Good," he nodded. Having hung up his suits, he took his toiletries to the bathroom. Then he came back, and leaned against the door frame, watching Serena standing where he'd left her, with her back towards him mumbling to herself.

"Crazy woman says what?"

She looked his way, radiating utter indifference, sucking the warmth out off the mood. She walked past him, out of the room. She sat by her desk and started her laptop.

"I was just kidding," Darien pleaded following her. She kept on ignoring him. "There is a Woody Allen movie on TV now, let's watch it," he continued helplessly.

"I can't," she responded apathetically, "I have to read up on how to take care of your spawn now."

"Come on, don't spoil the mood like that," he almost begged as he leaned again the back on the sofa.

She turned around to face him. "Spoiling your mood makes me happy, so please look forward to more of it in the future," she said before turning to face her screen again.

Darien sighed, seated himself on the sofa and reached for the remote to put on the movie. It had already started, and was about ten minutes in. On the following commercial break he glanced over his shoulder to check on Serena. He noticed that instead of reading about pregnancy, she was on YouTube. He decided not to comment, he didn't know what he did to annoy her, but he was not about to add fuel to the fire. So finished watching the movie, and proceeded with watching the late night show that followed it.

Suddenly, he heard a loud, annoying beeping sound. It came from the alarm clock on the shelf above the TV, it was 23.00 o'clock. He figured that it was ringing by mistake, and got up to switch it off.

"Don't touch it!" Serena ordered, as she switched off her computer. She then walked over to it and turned it off, and then she turned off the TV. She walked off to the bathroom where she spent a few minutes, before emerging again and switching off the living-room lights and disappearing into her bedroom, closing the door behind her. For some time he saw a beam of light escape from space between the door and the floor. And suddenly it was all dark.

Darien stood there, surprised. The new Serena seemed to be more of a bohemian, and not the kind to follow routines; she was an actress who drank a lot of wine and seldom did the dishes… but what he'd just witnessed was like clockwork. And then it occurred to him that he'd been completely forgotten. He didn't even have a blanket to sleep with! He stripped off to his underwear, the apartment was pretty warm and he didn't need his soft pants. He brushed his teeth, and unabashedly proceeded with entering Serena's room and then ruthlessly turning on the lights.

"What the fuck?!" was Serena's annoyed response, as she automatically sat up accurately scoping out his general direction.

"I need a pillow and a blanket," he stated.

Her stare lingered a couple of seconds longer, and then he saw her color brightly. She looked cute with her strange buns disheveled, like an annoyed puppy. She then quickly disappeared under her sheets, bringing them over her head.

"Get it yourself!" she said in a muffled voice.

He obeyed and started looking for the necessities. He opened and closed several doors of the wall to wall wardrobe.

"Third door from the left, top shelf," she helped, as she peeked from her sheets.

Darien grabbed a pillow and a rather thin blanket, before going to her side of the bed and planting a kiss on her temple.

"Good night," he whispered, and headed out, turning off the offending light and closing the door behind him.

He settled himself as comfortably as he could on the sofa, and lay for a while observing the pale, dead moonlight illuminating the lower part of the bookshelf. Knowing that Serena was asleep in the next room warmed his heart. He was falling in love, and it worried him that she was so determined to dislike him. I'll changed her mind, was the thought that lingered on his mind before he fell asleep.


End file.
